Some things I've learned along the way...

As probably most of you guys know, this month I'm doing a painting a day.  I have to say that without my adoring fans, I probably would have given up tonight.  But thanks to one of my most uh, colorful critics, I got off my lazy butt and went and painted.

Look how thick that paint is on the dandylion!

Back to things I've learned in the last 9 days of painting.  I was explaining to a friend of mine today that I was doing a painting a day because I wanted to get back into habit of painting.  And I felt like there was more to it than that but I couldn't figure out what it was at the time.  Tonight I figured it out!
#1. It requires planning!  and I'm not a planner so its been a learning process.
#2. It is reestablishing a painting habit.  I don't like to go a week (or more) and not paint, but the last couple of months that what had been happening.
#3. It gets rid of the idea that I have to have something "pretty" to paint.  I don't have time to think about the "perfect" thing to paint.  I have to pick something and get it done....so no procrastinating!
#4. The past couple of years I've spent more time trying to figure out the business end of art and haven't had enough FUN painting!  This year is the year of FUN!  I'm painting because I love too, not because I'm trying to become a not starving artist :)
#5.  It releases the pressure in unexpected ways!  A great example is tonight's painting.  It isn't like my usual paintings.  I started the painting 2 times and wiped it off 2 times.  After the 3rd attempt, I started thinking what can I do differently?  What can I do thats going to make me feel good?  The answer...put a butt load of paint on it!  Its good to do something different sometimes, it keeps you from getting into a rut.

So what are you doing differently this year?  I can see myself applying the painting lessons I've learned from this month to other areas of my life.  Shake it up at bit!!!!

How did it start?

This drawing is from 1994!  I loved drawing from comic books and Rouge was my favorite character.  Just keep reading to see how far I've come :)

I am following along with Dani Keith's blog.  She is applying for a grant and is posting the answers to her questions and I thought it would be fun!  So here is the next one.

How did you get started as an artist? What events moti­vated you to start your com­pany?”

I started as an artist at a very young age! I started when I was 4, at that age everyone is an artist!  Thats before you let the world tell you that you can't draw, or you can't paint.  Thats when everything was free, free to color outside of the lines, free to throw splatters on your castles....more about that later.  My mom still has a particular drawing that I did.  It was of the family and we were all stick people but I got my dads eyes just right. See, he has a glass eye so they are slightly different from each other.  I drew the glass eye smaller than his real eye (which is how it is in real life)  and so mom says thats when she knew I was an artist!  If you've read Dani's blog her mom knew well before her that she was an artist too.  Somthing about those mommas!

This drawing was selected for the student section of the Laguna website in 2005.

I drew all throughout school.  I quit taking art my senior year in high school.  I didn't figure there was much I could do with it, plus it was much more important to me at the time to get half days than to stay all day just for an art class. When I was 20  I started a community college in Hawaii (my husband was a Marine and we were stationed there)  I took a drawing class just to fulfill a credit and I fell in love all over again!  I had a great teacher, Snowden Hodges, who I thought could teach anyone to draw!   I took as many classes as I could while I was there and of course thought I was an awesome artist....ah the pride of the young.

Flash forward a couple of years and I started attending Laguna College of Art and Design.  I had the pleasure of studying under Betty Shelton.  Who is an absolutely fabulous teacher and artist.  I still ask her questions...and she still answers them (I think that is the true sign of a teacher! and I hope to be like her some day) Back to LCAD, I absolutely loved it!  And I truly did some exceptional work while I was for one year.  bum bum bum then I got pregnant.  So I was an art school dropout.  Thats ok though, Faith kept me from going into even more debt than I already had!  Oh, and I love my baby girl!  :)  After having Faith I took some time off from art.  When I started back up I thought I would sell art through home parties, kinda like Tupperware.  It didn't quite work out but you learn more from your failures than from your successes!  At that point in my life I felt like I absolutely had to make it work and it really sucked all the fun out of painting.  Now, I'm at a place where I can relax and enjoying creating artwork.  I'm not desperate to make my art sell and I love it!  You may ask, what changed?  In that time period I became debt free!  Who knew that debt could cloud all your creative processes?  While painting I would think about how I needed to sell it so I could pay off debt, or buy more supplies etc.  Now I don't have to worry about that its awesome!  So now I've got an etsy shop and I'm doing arts/craft fairs....and of course I'm always interested in gallery representation :)

Is summer over?

I set out to take a break in July from blogging because I had so much going on. But then  it turned into an extended holiday!  (I know, I know I said holiday, but I swear I'm American! I've just been watching a lot of International House Hunters lately)  Friday was First Friday in Downtown Greensboro.  I've been meaning to post pictures of my booth with the lights on but this was the first time I remembered to take a picture!

This past Friday I unveiled my newest creation, silhouette portraits on plates.  The kids all loved the pink one because it looked like Barbie.  Of course then there was the one lady that started talking about how our kids are brainwashed because they thought the plate looked like Barbie.  I have to say that  although I made the portrait up from my head I had her silhouette in mind when I did it. 

Paintings from Asheville

Mountain Skyline on the Blue Ridge Parkway

Last month I posted a video of me while I was painting in Asheville, NC.  I was told that I needed to show photos of those paintings!  I can't believe that I left those out.  A is for Amber, Artist, and Airhead!

Blue Ridge Parkway

detail

View from Mt Mitchell (the colors are off, the pic below is closer)

detail, Mt Mitchell

Wooded Path

Something New

So I thought I would try something new this week.  My paintings are from life or nature.  I very rarely draw from my imagination.  During worship on Sunday in my mind's eye I saw a blue bird coming out of some swirly things so I decided it was time for me to step out of my box and paint it! By the way Word of Life Family Church youth group is having a dinner and a show on Friday.  The youth group is raising money to go on a missions trip at the end of the month.   $5 a plate $3 for kids.  Let me know if your interested and I'll hook you up with some tickets!

 

The daisy painting is another from my imagination.  I was rocking out to the new Newsboys cd.  It was a fun day in the studio.  Different but fun...oh and I got a purple spot in my hair, I accidentally put my paintbrush in my hair and didn't realize it.  By the time I saw it, it didn't want to come out!

Dani's angel

 

Dani's angel is a custom piece.  She asked me to paint an angel for her momma so I drew a little inspiration from one of favorite artists, Mucha.

Tupelo Honey Cafe Yummy Yum!

I haven't had a chance to tell you all about this awesome place I went to eat when I was in Asheville a couple of weeks ago.  Its called Tupelo Honey Cafe.  And we went twice!  It was so yummy.  They gave us biscuits with blueberry preserves while we waited for our food.  My very favorite item on the menu (i had it both times as a side to my chicken sandwich and my burger the next day) was the Sweet Potato pancakes!  They were so good that I bought their recipe book.  So I thought I would share it with you and hopefully next time your in Asheville, NC you can stop by and check them out.  I have to say that I tried it out using pancake batter  and it turned out good that way too.  But be careful if your a novice in the kitchen if you decide not to use the recipe! ;)

Sweet Potato Pancakes with Peach Butter and Spiced Pecans

1 Lg sweet potato

2 3/4 C all-purpose flour

1tea salt

5 table plus 1 1/2 tea sugar

3/4 tea baking soda

1 1/2 tea baking powder

3 c buttermilk

3 eggs

2 tbl unsalted butter, melted

2 tbl tupelo honey (i use what i got)

1 tea cinnamon

1/2 tea nutmeg

Wrap sweet potato in foil bake 350 for 45 min. or until tender. Let cool to room temp.

Combine flour, salt, sugar, baking soda and baking powder.

In another bowl whisk buttermilk, eggs and melted butter..

Add wet mix to dry mix.

Peel sweet potato  and mash add honey, cinamon, and nutmeg.  Mix well.

Add sweet potato mix to pancake batter.  Mix well. Let stand for 1 hour.

Spiced Pecans

1 1/2 teaspoons tupelo honey

1/4 tea cayenne pepper

1/4 teaspoon sea salt

1 1/2 tea unsalted butter

1 C chopped pecans

In a bowl mix honey, cayenne, and salt.  Melt the butter in a skillet, Med heat.  Add honey mix and the pecans and cook for 8-10 min, until lightly browned and caramelized.   Remove from heat, let cool.  Store in an airtight container.

Peach Butter

8 tbl unsalted butter, at room temp

1 large ripe peach peeled or finely diced, or 3/4 C frozen peached, diced fine

1 1/2 tea brown sugar

1/8 tea sea salt

1 tbl peach nectar

In a food processor, mix all ingredients by pulsing briefly, retaining pieces of peach visible in the mixture.  Keep refriderated, but bring to room temp before serving.  (good on biscuits, cornbread, and waffles too!)